NEW YORK — After the Rangers scored four times in the second period of Saturday’s blowout win over Pittsburgh, Artemi Panarin cautioned that people shouldn’t read too much into the Blueshirts’ ability to light up scoreboards around the league.
“It's the NHL,’’ he said. “Today, everything’s going well; tomorrow, sometimes not.’’
But sometimes, it’s even better.
On Sunday, the Rangers scored six goals in the first period against the Nashville Predators, chasing starting goalie Kevin Lankinen less than 10 minutes into the game, and went on to cruise to a 7-0 victory at the Garden for their fourth win in a row, and sixth in the last seven games.
The six first-period goals tied a team record for the most goals in a first period, set multiple times, the last in December 1999 against the Los Angeles Kings. The Rangers' five goals in the first 10:01 of the first period set a franchise record for shortest span required to get to five goals.
K’Andre Miller had two goals and two assists in the first period, becoming the first Rangers defenseman to record four points in one period.
The beneficiary of all that scoring for the Rangers was backup goaltender Jaroslav Halak, who was tested early in the game, but then had a relatively comfortable evening. He made 22 saves to post his first shutout as a Ranger and the 53rd of his career.
The Rangers are off Monday and close out the five-game homestand with a game against the Metropolitan Division leaders, the Carolina Hurricanes, in the first of two straight games against the ‘Canes. The teams play again Thursday in Raleigh, N.C.
With Sunday’s victory, the Rangers (41-19-10, 92 points) reduced their magic number to clinch a playoff spot to 12 points, meaning any combination of points earned by them or lost by the Florida Panthers (the first team out of the playoffs in the Eastern Conference) would book the Blueshirts’ ticket to the postseason.
Filip Chytil started the party when he scored the first goal of the game, taking a pass from Miller in his own zone and weaving his way up the middle, through the entire Nashville defense, and flipping a forehand shot over Lankinen’s catching glove for a remarkably easy goal at 2:37. For Chytil, the goal was his 20th of the season, and broke an 18-game drought. He had last scored Feb. 8 against Vancouver.
Mika Zibanejad followed with his fifth goal in the last four games, and 37th on the season, to make it 2-0 at 7:22, Tyler Motte was next, with his second as a Ranger – and second in three games – at 8:14. Miller’s first goal, at 9:09, came while the teams were skating four-on-four, and that was all for Lankinen, who made one save and allowed four goals.
Panarin scored on a four-on-three power play, against Juuse Saros, at 10:01, and Miller added his second, on a wrist shot from the right point, at 13:36. That made it 6-0.
Chris Kreider continued the onslaught in the second period, jamming in the rebound of a Vincent Trocheck shot for his 32nd goal of the season at 9:02 of the period. The goal was the 261st of Kreider’s career, moving him one behind Vic Hadfield for fifth place in franchise history.
Kreider’s goal was the 15th consecutive scored by the Rangers, who scored the final two goals in Thursday’s 4-2 win over Pittsburgh and then beat the Penguins 6-0 on Saturday.
Notes & quotes: Defenseman Ryan Lindgren missed his 11th straight game with an upper-body injury, but Gallant said in his pregame media briefing that he believes Lindgren is likely to return to the lineup on Tuesday, when the Rangers host the Carolina Hurricanes at the Garden.
